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If It Were Offered, Would You Take a Period Vacation From Work?

Mikhail Degtyaryov, of the nationalist LDPR party who is also running for mayor, introduced a bill that would give women two paid days off work every month while they have their periods. His reasoning?

"During that period, most women experience psychological and physiological discomfort. The pain for the fair sex is often so intense that it is necessary to call an ambulance."

Well. I don't know about an ambulance, but we all experience the joys of menstruation differently, so who knows? Essentially, Degtyaryov is saying that women may be hormonal and not so good at their jobs during those lovely three to seven days of the month.

With the cramps and the irritation levels at a specific kind of high, a few (paid!) days off sounds kind of like a good idea. But think about the other points: potentially awkward conversations amongst coworkers about why you're not there ("She can't sign off on that today, because she's on period leave"). And what about the age and gender discrimination possibilities (what about women who have gone through menopause? What about men? Shouldn't everyone get a few extra days off?). Also, do we really have to fuel the fire that women are wacky and not to be trusted when they're on their periods?

Of course, this is all kind of a non-issue for us, since there's no similar bill pending in the U.S.—and Degtyaryov has been met with disinterest from women's rights groups in Russia. Still—interesting to think about, right?